From the May, 1999 issue of Maxim Magazine

TOTALLY AMPED

Valve Amplification Company

Renaissance 30/30 MK III amp $6,500

Your know-nothing friends may bust your balls for buying an amp that delivers only 32 watts per channel. When their snickering has abated, mention "palpable instrumentation" and "three dimensional imaging," then turn it on and watch them shut the fuck up. Developed 65 years ago for movie theaters, the amp's tubes pump out music that's beyond what most components on the planet produce. The Absolute Sound, a high-end-stereo journal, called it "the single most impressive component...in the last decade." Bonus: Its tubes light up a room! (Valve Amplification Company, 919-596-1107) [Note: the telephone number has been changed to 941-952-9695]